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West Pasco doubles fortunes in World Series

After failing to win in last year's Dixie Softball tournament, the Debs come away with two victories this year, losing the final game by a run.

By STEVE LEE
Published August 10, 2006

NEW PORT RICHEY - The West Pasco Debs ages 15-18 fared much better in their second straight trip to the Dixie Softball League World Series.

State champion West Pasco went 2-2 to finish fifth in the July 29-31 series at Alexandria, La.

Not bad for a team that went 0-2 in last year's series and whose coach questioned the Debs' chances at state after lackluster efforts in pre-tournament scrimmages.

"That's better than we thought we were going to do," coach Karen Karl said. "Those teams were good. Every team that we played, they were athletes."

West Pasco opened the series with a 2-1 win over Virginia, followed by a 5-3 loss to Louisiana, 10-9 defeat of Georgia and 7-6 loss to South Carolina.

"(The South Carolina game) was a heartbreaker, because we were coming back," Karl said.

Trailing South Carolina 7-3 through five innings, West Pasco scored three in the bottom of the seventh to come up a run short. Amanda Graham, Ana Alberti and Lisa Nickle had run-scoring hits in West Pasco's final at-bat.

A comeback would have given West Pasco two in a row. The Debs overcame a 9-6 deficit against Georgia with a four-run seventh. Graham, a four-year starter at Mitchell who had a run-scoring single in that inning, scored the winner on Nickle's double.

Jessica Garcia had three hits and two runs scored against Georgia, with Graham and the Karl sisters, Christy and Jenny, each scoring twice.

Christy Karl's groundout drove in Nickle, who doubled, for the winner against Virginia.

In the Louisiana game, Michelle Moore, Nickle and Kaitlyn McHale had RBIs.

MVPs: League officials named most valuable players for each team after every game. West Pasco's MVPs, games 1-4, were Christy Karl, Alberti, Nickle and Moore.

MARTIAL ARTS CHAMPS: Five boys and girls from Regency Tae Kwon Do in New Port Richey earned medals at the Amateur Athletic Union Junior Olympics.

Competing in the Aug. 3-4 event at Norfolk, Va. Starlight Conolley, Liz Marcano and Lewis Munger won gold in sparring. D.J. Johnson earned a silver in sparring and Beau Pulsifer took bronze in sparring and kata (forms).

Conolley, Johnson and Marcano also combined for a bronze in team kata.

Contact Steve Lee at lee@sptimes.com

[Last modified August 9, 2006, 22:59:02]